Canada Rowing Skulls Race - St Johns River NB - Tyne Team Captain Died Newcastle
Item History & Price
Paris and tyne teams - A Saint John four man rowing team stunned audiences at the World’s Fair in Paris by humiliating the best of the French, British, and university rowing crews. When they returned home they where known as the Paris four - Robert Fulton, Elijah Ross, Samuel Hutton, and Geo...rge Price and continued to be victorious, until they lost by a yard to a British challenge at Lachine, Que. in 1870.
A rematch -known as the "Great Race, " - took place on the Kennebecasis Rover in 1871.The British team was led by one of England’s most famous rowers, James Renforth, of Newcastle upon Tyne. Thousands of people traveled long before dawn from Saint John to the river community known as The Chalet. Bandstands were erected to hold the throngs, and the river was filled with every type of vessel. At 7:34 a.m. the two boats surged away from the starting line to race a six-mile course. The Saint John rowers maintained a confident lead from the beginning and the crowds roared as the crossed the finish line in just over 39 minutes. However, the British boat had already pulled into shore, with an ailing James Renforth. According to the newspaper, Renforth "dropped his oar, threw up an arm and would have fallen overboard had he not been caught by Kelly, who supported him, while Percy and Chambers rowed the shell ashore."Within hours, Renforth was dead from an apparent stroke. His companions were devastated. Flags throughout the city were lowered to half-mast, and the routine celebratory bonfires were absent that night. The Chalet was subsequently renamed Renforth in honour of the ill-fated rower.
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